Page 15 - Silver Linings Issue4
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 as she earned her Doctorate in Nursing Education and Leadership at Sacred Heart University late in her career, just prior to coming to Silver Hill.
“I didn’t care how old I was I just kept going back to school,” Sharon says. “I was going to be the same age I was going to be if I didn’t go back for my doctorate. So, I did it.
I was old and it motivated other people to go back. I’m glad I did it
SHARON’S BIO
Education:
SACRED HEART UNIVERSITY
Doctor of Nursing Practice, 2013
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY
Master of Arts, Nursing Education, Psychiatric Mental Health
HUNTER COLLEGE-BELLEVUE SCHOOL OF NURSING Bachelor of Science, Nursing
Nursing experience:
More than 30 years in psychiatric nursing and teaching at Bellevue Hospital, LIJ Medical Center, Cochran School of Nursing, St. Vincent’s Medical Centers of NY and Silver Hill Hospital.
She recently developed an online program in Psychiatric Nursing for Saudi-Aramco nurses, mentoring nurses in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
As an entrepreneur, she is a partner in “Life Educators,” a service for training airline staff in CPR and First Aid.
because it shows other people how important it is. I may go back to school again. There’s no end
to learning.”
Education translates to caring
The emphasis on education, of course, is ultimately about improving
patient care
“She has an enormous heart,” Silver Hill’s President and Medical Director Andrew J. Gerber,
M.D., Ph.D., says. “She is very nonjudgmental and looks at the patients as part of a family unit. She sees the strengths in our patients and makes a connection with them. Regardless of where they are in terms of their illness,
at Silver Hill. Expanding one’s knowledge, keeping up
with the latest treatment methods and growing as a person will only lead to better and more compassionate care, Sharon says.
Sharon sees them as people to learn from and respect.”
Sharon was exposed to mental illness at a young age as she grew
up across the street from a woman with schizophrenia and babysat for the child of an alcoholic woman in her neighborhood. Sharon’s mother taught her to be respectful and compassionate toward the neighbors
and to look out for them.
“You have
to respect people’s dignity,” Sharon said.
Final words of advice
As she prepares for a retirement of looking for seashells on the beach in Florida and adding to her knickknack collection of Peanuts characters, Sharon has the following advice for young nurses – and everyone else:
“Be nice to people. Care about them,” she says. “Be nice.”
Sharon is part of the Executive Team at Silver Hill and has many administrative duties, but she makes it a point to see patients as much as possible too, particularly during mealtimes. She discovered she loved this type of nursing when she was a student nurse in New York City exploring the different fields of medicine. Behavioral health, particularly working with difficult patients, was her niche.
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“I find what I’ve done very rewarding. But the most important thing, and it’s something everyone can do, is to care about people. Caring is really the essence of nursing. When someone feels cared for, I think I’ve accomplished something. I’ve been able to do that my whole life in one way or another. I feel I’ve fulfilled my mission.” Sharon Kowalchuk, RN, DNP
 “Sharon’s heart
has always
been with the patient,” Dr.
Groat adds.
“She embodies
a genuine,
in-depth
appreciation for
the patient. She exudes that kind
of spirit in her
work and that’s extraordinarily important in her role.”
      SILVER LININGS MAGAZINE | ISSUE FOUR | 2022




















































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